Piano-playing mechanism and the like.



G. W. ATKINSON.

PIANO PLAYING MECHANISM AND THE LIKE.

v APPLIOATION FILED APB-'9. 1910.

" Patented Dec. 3, 1912.

5 SHEETSSHEET 1.

COLUMBIA rumomuvu (0.. WASHINGTON, u. c.

G. W. ATKINSON.

PIANO PLAYING MECHANISM AND THE LIKE. APPL/IOATION FILED APR. 9. 1910.

1,046,369, Patented Dec. 3, 1912.

5 SHEETSSHBET 2.

I INVENTOR wn-wzsszs ATT'Y OLUMBIA PLANOGRAPH COnWASHlNGTON n c G. W.ATKINSON.

PIANO PLAYING MECHANISM AND THE LIKE. APPLICATION FILED APR. 9. 1910.

Patented Dec; 3,1912.

5 SHEETSSHEIT 3.

INVENTOR COLUMBIA PLQNQGRAPH (20., WASHINGTON, n. c.

G. W. ATKINSON.

PIANO PLAYING MECHANISM AND THE LIKE. APPLICATION FILED APR.9. 1910.

' 1,046,369. Patented Dec.3,1912.

5 SHEETSSHEBT 4.

INVENTOR By AT-r Y G.-W. ATKINSON.

PIANO PLAYING MECHANISM AND THE LIKE.

APPLIGATION FILED APR. 9. 1910.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 5.

INVENTOR WITNESSES ClaMdw uw G la Mm CLAUDE WILLIAM ATKINSON, OF GREATMISSENDEN, ENGLAND.

PIANO-PLAYING MECHANISM AND THE LIKE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 3, 1912.

Application filed April 9, 1910. Serial No. 554,346.

To all whom it may concern.

Be it known that I, CLAUDE WILLIAM ATKINSON, a subject of the King ofGreat Britain and Ireland, residing at Little Hampden, Great Missenden,in the county of Bucks, England, have invented new and usefulImprovements in and Relating to Piano-Playing Mechanism and the Like, ofwhich the following is a specification.

This invention relates to piano playing mechanism and the like, and hasfor its object the construction and arrangement of pneumatic operatingmechanism whereby (1) simplicity, low cost of manufacture andcompactness of installation are obtained. (2) metal or other imperviousmaterial can be used in place of wood.

This invention has particular reference to the piano playing mechanismdescribed and illustrated in the complete specification filed in supportof an application for Letters Patent under No. 538009 dated the 14th ofJanuary 1910. l

The invention consists in the various constructional details hereinafterdescribed and illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

Figure 1 is a sectional elevation of the key bed of an ordinary pianowith my improved construction installed beneath the same and havingconnecting means between the power pneumatics and the key levers. Fig. 2is a perspective view of the vacuum chest of stepped formation, and airtrunks leading from the same to the orifices communicating with theplaying table. Fig. 3 is a detail plan view of the end and front airtrunks, showing the means of connection one to the other. Fig. 4 is asectional view of the front air trunk taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. 3.Fig. 5 shows a part side elevation of an end trunk, showing the socketon which the front air trunks are mounted. Fig. 6 shows a side view ofone of the strutting devices within the stepped vacuum chamber, forsupporting the walls of the same, and affording fastening means for thepower pneumatics. Fig. 7 is a part front elevation of the two front airtrunks, showing the connecting means by which communication is made withthe playing table. Fig. 8 is a plan of the same. Fig. 9 is a partsectional elevation of a power pneumatic, attached to its cantalivercarrying tube. Fig. 10 shows the first step of the method of assemblingand fastening the power pneumatics upon the vacuum chestflat section andare made of'a Fig. 11 is a similar view of the fastening means screweddown into place so as to permanently fasten the power pneumatics. Fig.12 is a part plan of Fig. 11. Figs. 13 and 14 show the device for makingthe end joint between the top of the vacuum chest and the tube of theend pneumatic. 'Fig. 15 is a perspective view of one of the springs formaintaining the waist in the envelop of the power pneumatic. Figs. 16and 17 are views showing the means by which the key operating attachmentis fixedly mounted on the power pneumatic. Fig. 18 shows two views ofthe connecting rod between the power pneumatic and its key. Fig. 19 aredetail views of the pallet, at the bottom of the key connecting rod.Fig. 20 is an enlarged sectional view of the valve pneumatic and thevalves which it operates. Fig. 21 is a plan view of the connectingdevice between a valve pneumatic and its valves. Fig. 22 is a plan viewof the spgports for the stems on which the valves s 1 e. a

In the drawings a is the key bed of the piano, 1) a white key, 0 a blackkey and cl the connecting means, adapted to operate each key from thepower pneumatics e. The power pneumatics e are constructed in accordancewith the description in the specification of No. 538009 of 1910.

The vacuum chest f is supported at the rear of the key bed a by slot-tedquadrants g, mounted on the frame of the piano and adapted to allow thewhole of the player mechanism to be folded downward about the center 9The vacuum chest f is made of sheet metal in two parts f and f bent upin the particular form shown in the drawings.

Within the body of the vacuum chest 1 are arranged at intervals struts hadapted to support the part f wholly and to assist in supporting theledges f and f of the portion f These struts further form a part of thedetachable means for holding the pneumatics in position as hereinafterdescribed.

The power pneumatics e are mounted on and attached to the tubes 6 bymeans of hollow projection 6 edges of which are bent over in order toform a riveted attachment between the tubes 6 and the lower plate of thepower pneumatic. The tubes 6 are of sheet of metal bent around so thatthe two edges butt against one another closely at 6 and in order to fillany small interstice left between the two abutting edges, a coating ofcementing material such as red lead paint can be applied to the joint ofthe tube a and the ends of the tubes are plugged by dished elements 6 Inasembling the power pneumatics 6 with their tubes 6 in position upon thestepped surfaces of the vacuum chest f, they are laid side by side inseries, say of 7 white notes or 5 black notes, the latter beingrepresented in Figs. 10, 11 and 12. Between the tubes 6 are disposeddistance pieces 6* of suitable shape, and varying in width to suit theintervals of space, and about the series of tubes and distance pieces aband 0 consisting of two pieces of metal is disposed, the whole being ofa curved formation of which the ends are higher than the center so thatthe tubes 6 with their distance pieces 6 form the compression member,while the band 6 forms the tension member. Above the band is disposed atightening bar 6 which is also curved somewhat similarly to the initialformation of the tubes and distance pieces. This bar 6 first bears uponthe band 6 and is adapted to be drawn down by screws which engage theends of the bar 6 and are screwed into the tapped holes 6 of the strutsh. Fig. 10 shows the whole of the parts assembled and before thetightening process is carried out.

As the screws 6 are screwed down the bar 6 is straightened and this inturn straightens the series of tubes 6 and distance pieces (2 until theyassume the position shown in Fig. 11, where they lie in a straight linerigidly clamped down upon the vacuum chest and tightly drawn up togetheras a compact body by the action of the curved tightening bar 6 on theinitially curved series of tubes and distance pieces. I usually insert athin strip f of suitable jointing material along the top of the vacuumchest f so as to insure an air tight joint. It will thus be seen thatthe spaces f between the upper portions of the parts f and f forming thevacuum chest are entirely covered over by the series of tubes 0 anddistance pieces (2 from end to end with the exception of where thesections of tubes 6 and distance pieces 6 are adjacent to one another,in which case a cover plate 6 is adapted to bridge the space leftbetween the sections of tubes and distance pieces and to be held down bythe end distance pieces or end tubes of each series as the case may be;a further filling in being effected by means of packing 6 forced inbetween the plate a and curved portion of the tubes 6 or distance piecesa as the case is'(illustrated in Fig. 13) the packing being maintainedin place by shellac varnish or other suitable medium.

In order to maintain a waist in the flexible envelop of the powerpneumatics so that the said envelop properly folds when the powerpneumatic is operated, a spring 2' of thin wire is arranged in the shapeshown in Fig. 15, so that the looped portion 2' rests upon the top ofthe tube 6 while'the extending prongs 2' are disposed along the fold ofthe power pneumatic e and exert a pressure inward so as to give theflexible envelop a tendency to fold inward; this spring 2' is held inposition by any suitable means such as a binding thread Within the powerpneumatic at the end where the two parts hinge on one another, a pad eof felt or other flexible or resilient material is disposed so as toinsure a better hinged connection and relieve to a certain extent theflexible envelop at the hinge from undue strain.

The valve pneumatics 7c are of similar construction to those describedin the beforementioned specification and are inserted intoconical seats76 formed in the bottom wall of the vacuum chest. To the part 76 isattached a flexible envelop 7a to which in turn is attached a dishedbody a groove Z3 being provided around the said body into which theenvelop 70 is bound by thread. The stem 7& is attached to the part 70and is provided at its upper end with a platform 763 adapted to contactwith the bridle 70 slidingly mounted on the stem 79 and adapted to liftthe valve 70 directly, and by means of the sliding sleeve 70 and spring70 also the valve 70 The valves 72 and Z3 when the part 76 is lifted bythe collapsing action of the atmosphere operate in conjunction withseatings formed on both sides of the tubes 0 In order to support theweight of the moving part, a spring 76 is disposed on the upper surfaceof the valve pneumatic 7."- and engages on the underside of the platform 70 Further a pad f of felt or other similar resilient material isdisposed beneath the valve pneumatics and supported by a tray f of metalor the like, so arranged as to afford protection to the said valvepneumatics and to act as a support when the player is out of action (seeFig. 1). In order that the bridle can pass over the head of the stem kwhen being assembled a. kink 76 is made in the bridle as shown in Fig.21.

A suitable support is provided for each of the stems 70 by a series ofU-shaped arms Z being bent up from a single strip of metal (as shown inFigs. 1, 12 and 22) having holes Z through two thicknesses of metal andinto the holes Z the stems 713 are adapted to be held in a rigid manner.

It will be noticed in Figs. 10 and 11 that a strip of metal is showninside the band 0 thiS is essentially the common bar Z upon which thevarious supporting devices are mounted or attached. It has been found inpractice that there is no need for a bleed hole to be provided in thevalve pneumatics 7:: as the hole through the upper part of the valvepneumatic through which the stem passes can be made sufficiently largeto act as a bleed hole. a

On the top plate of the power pneumatics e, I provide pins m, carried inbrackets m each bracket having a foot m which is adapted to engage underthe ridge m of the power pneumatic. A retaining plate 1% of wedgeformation rests upon the upper side of the foot m of the bracket m andby engaging the ridge m of the power pneumatic e on each side exerts ajamming action on the foot of the bracket m This bracket m is made ofone piece of metal bent around to form a boss for holding the pin m. Thepin m, when the mechanism is properly assembled is disposed above thetop of the projecting arm d rigidly held at the lower end of theconnecting rod (Z which at its upper end is provided with a clip (Zadapted to engage with a lateral projection (I attached to the undersideof the key; this form of connection allows the whole of the piano actionto be moved across the piano to a certain extent as is the case when thesoft pedal is used in grand pianos, without putting any strain on thekey attachment (Z.

The various key connectors are guided in felt bushes (Z suitably held inmetal tubes (1 supported in the key bed a, while on the underside of thekey bed a, leather disks d are provided and maintained in place by metalwashers d. The leather disks serve as guiding supports to the lower partof the connecting rods (Z. The projecting arms (Z are fastened to therods 03 by forming them of plate bent double with an eye at the partwhere the bend is situated and having two holes (i through which thestem 0? can pass; the stem cZ being provided with a kink cl so as to lieat the back of the eye and be maintained in a fixed position by a pin ddriven laterally through the eye.

Referringnow to Fig. 2 the vacuum chest f is connected at its end withside trunks n, which at the front portion of the mechanism are connectedto a long trunk n arranged from side to side and two short trunks 01?,which extend up to the front plate a to which the playing table isattached. It will be noticed that the trunks n and n are arranged withtheir long axes at right angles to one another, in order to form agirder of great constructural rigidity on the one hand and a propertransverse sectional area of passage on the other. The air trunkconnections a to the playing table, are disposed on the front face ofthe combined trunks n and 92 and in order to form a simple and effectiveconnection be-- tween the trunks n and n and n I provide as shown inFigs. 3, 4 and 5 a raised shoulder a on the trunk a, over which thetrunks n and 71. pass as a sleeve; blocks a are inserted and held in thetrunks n and a into which screwed studs n provided with nuts n areinserted so as to draw the trunks n and 12 respectively, into closeproximity to the trunk n. Dished caps n are attached to the ends of thetrunks n in order to close the same. The trunk n is divided at itscentral part by stop pieces n (see Fig. 7) which not only divide thetrunk into'bass and treble sections but at the same time enable theriveted connect-ions between the two trunks n and n to be made in asubstantial manner. The ends of the tracker pipes are inserted intorearwardly dished holes stamped in the front perforated plate 77. toform a flange and are locked in position by being expanded into theholes formed by the flanged portion. The plate a is extended backwardand laterally to form a base plate for the whole mechanism.

In order that the mechanism can be partly dismounted for inspection orrepair I provide a pivotal device 9 at the rear of the apparatus and atthe front along the underside of the key bed a I arrange a strip 0 ofmetal or similar material from which depend lugs 0 formed with aninclined plane on their rearmost side as shown in Fig. 1, so that thelugs 0 shall not interfere with the passage of the top front edge of thetrunk 12, when the player is rotated about its center 9 WVhen the playeris to be maintained in position a wedge 0 is inserted between the rearside of the lug 0 and the front of the playing mechanism and held inplace by a screw 0 the said screw serving also to lock the player inposition; the block 0 which acts as the nut also closing the end of thetrunk n Spring pressed hooks 0 are also provided as a means ofattachment for the playing table, the said hooks being mounted in slotsformed in the lugs 0 Claims.

1. In a piano playing mechanism of the type described in combination, avacuum chest having upper surfaces in different horizontal planes, asupporting pipe having one end mounted on one of the said horizontalsurfaces of the said chest, a power pneumatic mounted on the other endof the said pipe, and hollow projections having bent edges rigidlyconnecting the power pneumatic to its supporting pipe adapted to formair passages from said pipe to the said pneumatic, substantially asdescribed.

2. In a piano playing mechanism of the type described, the combinationof a stepped vacuum chest with a series of sections of power pneumatics,each section comprising a certain number of power pneumatics mounted ontubes ranged side by side, folded .bars and put the tubes and distancepieces into compression and tightly bed said section 011 the vacuumchest, a pair of valves mounted on a loose pin, a distance piecedisposed between said valves, and a support mounted on and held firm bythe power pneumatic fastening devices for supporting the said loose pin,substantially as described.

3. In a piano playing mechanism of the type described, the combinationof a stepped vacuum chest with a series of sections of power pneumatics,each section comprising a. certain number of power pneumatics mounted ontubes ranged side by side, folded metal distance pieces between saidtubes where necessary, a tension band surrounding the assembled partsadapted to give before clamping down an arched formation to the saidsection, inversely curved clamping bars disposed along the length of thesection, means engaging with the vacuum chest for drawing the bars downtightly on the section to take the curve out of both section and barsand put the tubes and distance pieces into compression and tightly bedsaid section of the vacuum chest, a pair of valves mounted on a loosepin, a distance piece disposed between said valves, a support mounted onand held firm by the power pneumatic fastening devices for supportingthe said loose pin, and a valve pneumatic having a platform on its stemadapted to engage a striker threaded on said pin adapted to operate thesaid valves, substantially as described.

4. In a piano playing mechanism of the type described, the combinationof a stepped vacuum chest and a power pneumatic mounted thereon andprovided with a movable top plate having tapering sides with upwardlyand inwardly turned edges with a key actuating device on each powerpneumat-ic consisting of a base plate carrying the said key actuatingdevice, said plate engaging under the overlying edges of the top plateof the power pneumatic, and a retaining plate disposed over saidbase'plate and jammed between the tapering side edges of the said powerpneumatic plate to hold both the key actuating device and itself in afixed position, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in thepresence of two subscribing witnesses.

CLAUDE WILLIAM ATKINSON.

Witnesses REGINALD YVILLIAM JAMES, CrrAnLns J. R. BULLoUGI-r.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C.

